We harvested our first red cabbage this week! Look what a pretty cabbage it is. But it's definitely a pink cabbage, not a red cabbage. Who ever named them red cabbages? Pretty, pretty pink! Or is it purple? or Magenta? Or Fuchsia? Or violet? or.....

I made a coleslaw, of course - as we eat a lot of coleslaw in this household.

Along with the "pink" cabbage there are:

spring onions/scallions

sugar snap peas

raisins

carrots

and a dijon mustard fat free dressing.

It was delicious as well as colorful!

Today I used the coleslaw in coleslaw tacos, topped with hemp seeds.

So what color was the last "red" cabbage you ate? Red? Pink? Purple?

Cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable, and the red/pink color shows its full of anthocyanins, which are anti-oxidants and also anti-inflammatory. Cabbage also has anti-cancer activity, but it's consuming a variety of vegetables that has the most health benefits....as shown in this video:

Brussels Slaw with hazelnuts and dates

I made a lovely coleslaw recipe last week - using brussels sprouts instead of cabbage. It doesn't taste of brussels sprouts however - and my husband who doesn't like sprouts enjoyed it and then a couple of people in my food as medicine class who don't like sprouts also enjoyed it!

Yeah - a way to enjoy the healthy cruciferous vegetable Brussels Sprouts!

I used a mandoline to slice the sprouts - only slicing until you get to the more solid stalk part, then discarded the real white piece.

Finely slice the brussels, beginning at the top of each one and working down to the end, discarding the hard ends. You can do this by hand or carefully with a mandolin! Place in a bowl.

Slice the pitted dates and add to the brussels

If not roasted, roast the hazelnuts in a dry pan for a few minutes. Rub off the skins by placing the nuts in a tea towel and rubbing them together. Place the roasted nuts in a ziploc bag and crush lightly with a rolling pin or back of a spoon. Add to the brussels, along with the chopped onion and half the zest.

In a separate small bowl, whisk the vinegar, coconut nectar and walnut butter and pour over the slaw. Mix well.

Serve in a bowl/plate, garnished with the remaining zest.

The zest of the orange seems to bring all the flavors together in harmony. I first tried it without, but it is far better with it.

It lasts a couple of days in the fridge - if you can stop eating it!

Let me know if you give it a try. And yes, the correct term is Brussels Sprout - the S goes on the Brussels. They may have originated in Brussels, Belgium, but it is not certain.

Mustard pomegranate coleslaw

I make a big bowl of coleslaw at least once a week. It's a great way to enjoy cabbage - a cruciferous vegetable and an easy way to add whatever else you have in the fridge.

Today, I made a different style of dressing for it - a mustard dressing. It gives it a "meaty" sort of flavor. I always think the taste of mustard is suggestive of meat. When I make my lentil pate, it always tastes like it isn't vegan, because of the mustard.

I have a few staples in my coleslaw recipe and these are:cabbage (!), shreddedcarrots, gratedraisins or sultanas - I love the sweetness of the fruit in thereblack cumin seeds - for their immune boosting power

Today I also added:pomegranate seeds - yes, you can still buy fresh ones at Trader Joessun dried tomatoes - my new favorite brand

Black cumin coleslaw

I make a lot of coleslaw at home. We both really enjoy it - especially the crunch of the cabbage and all the other vegetables. Rarely a week goes by without me making some version or another. Here is this week's:

In this last batch I added a new ingredient - black cumin seeds (Nigella sativa). I've just come across black cumin as I've been researching for my class on spices next week. It's a yummy spice - not related to cumin to cumin at all. It went well with the coleslaw. I'll be writing more about it in the next few days as it has lots of healing properties.

As well as cabbage and black cumin there was also carrots, celery, chives, dried montmorency cherries, mint and sun-dried tomatoes. The dressing was an eggless vegan mayonnaise with lots of fresh lemon juice added.

Sadly today the mint had gone a bit brown, so I pulled all that out - note to self to not add mint if I'm not eating it all in one day! But I'll definitely be adding black cumin seeds to the recipe on a regular basis.